Sands China appoints Wilfred Wong as new president

Monday 14th of September 2015

Sands China Ltd. announced the appointment of Wilfred Wong, a property development and construction expert with close ties to the Beijing and Macau governments, as the company’s new president and chief operating officer.

Wong’s appointment, effective November 1, will replace Rob Goldstein, who has been serving as Sands China’s interim president since earlier this year.

Wong most recently was chairman and chief executive officer of the Hong Kong listed Hsin Chong Construction Group Ltd. and held top management positions in a number of other Hong Kong listed companies in the property development and construction business sectors, including K. Wah International Holdings Limited, Henderson China Holdings Limited and the Shui On Group.

“Wilfred has a unique combination of private and public sector experience we think will be invaluable to the company at this point in our history. We’ve been a part of the Macao community for more than a decade and our needs, along with our responsibilities to the people of Macao, have changed dramatically since we opened the Sands Macao in 2004,” said Sheldon Adelson, the chairman of both SCL and LVS.

Wong was also Deputy to the National People's Congress (China's legislature) from 1997-2012. He has also held positions in Hong Kong SAR, including as a member of the HKSAR Preparatory Committee responsible for the arrangements related to the handover of Hong Kong to China in 1997.

"We believe that Wong's primary responsibility will be to act as Sands' liaison with the Macau and, more importantly, Chinese governments," said Bernstein Research in a note. "This appointment comes at a critical juncture in Macau as the government is currently conducting its mid-term review of the gaming concessions and allocating gaming tables to new casino projects (including Sands' Parisian). We view this announcement as positive to Sands China as it strengthens the management team in Macau and adds an important element to government relations, " the note said.